How often are we scheduling space for ourselves and capturing these appointments to invest in our wellbeing in our calendars?

This is one of my favourite quotes from the book Finding the Space to Lead by Janice Marturano:

Scheduling space for ourselves is not a selfish act.  In fact, finding ways to nourish ourselves and attend to our needs requires that we put it in our calendar…

It is key to find those ways to nourish ourselves and capture this in our calendar, with a proactive lens.

Yes, our schedules are busy.  It is so important we make commitments to ourselves and capture this time in our calendars.  If it is not in the calendar somehow it just does not happen.

This is one of the lessons I have learned so well as I continue to move forward on my healing journey, from the motorcycle accident.  All my appointments are booked minimally two months in advance.  Many of these appointments cannot be re-scheduled.

What if instead of booking our appointments and time away work reactively,  we booked these four to six months in advance?

Some are blessed to have extended health plans, spending accounts and vacation leave.  How many are using all of these benefits to invest in our wellbeing? Many of us may not have these benefits but are committed to creating space to invest in our self care.

When I was working in traditional roles, the scheduling and planning of these were more reactive than proactive.

A few ideas to move forward in 2022 in new ways:

• Schedule and plan your annual vacation for the year ahead.
• Schedule your massage appointments several months in advance
• Pre-book all your Yoga and Pilates sessions for the next six months
• Schedule an afternoon or a day for thinking time and learning, weekly or monthly for the next year.

As you plan carefully consider how the choices you are making align with your values, purpose and your true priorities.

Plan your schedule for the next six months and define the core hours when you are available for your team.

The sweet spot in all of this is adding a proactive approach and capturing this in your calendar.  This becomes part of your schedule and not one more thing as it is part of your rituals and routines.

As you plan, give this careful and thoughtful consideration who can cover your key deliverables.

Part of this is to make a commitment to yourself that you will not think or talk about work, while taking this time to nourish your wellbeing.

We have 168 hours in each week. As Greg McKeown shares in Effortless

“Only do today what you can completely recover from today.”

What new choices will you make and how will you capture these commitments, to nourish your well being, in your calendar?

For further reading on this topic a few books to consider

Essentialism and Effortless by Greg McKeown
Finding the Space to Lead, by Janice Marturano
Your 168, by Harry Kraemer Jr.
The Burnout Epidemic, by Jennifer Moss

Be kind.

Be patient.

Be nourished in all you do.

At The Nourished Executive we coach leaders to invest in wellbeing, with a holistic lens, to prevent burnout.

Our founder, Sharon K. Summerfield,  is a Wellbeing Coach,  Holistic Nutritionist and Certified Smart Growth Advisor, with a demonstrated success in nurturing healthy employees and high performing organizations. 

We have a strong commitment to giving back, investing in local community creating space for all students to consider careers in construction, science, technology, engineering and math.